Minecraft: Cobblestone Tale
by jazzy2.us
Summary: The earth is an ancient thing with many tales to tell. But only through new beginnings can an old story continue.


The morning star rises over the earth when suddenly a new player manifests into a wooded biome. He takes his first breath and relaxes his muscles before opening his eyes and taking quick notice of his surroundings. It is almost like the player has woken up from a dream and crashed into reality with nothing more but an empty memory and an all too familiar feeling.

"_Welcome to the world, Joshy Boy,_" whispers a faint voice in the wind. "_May your new beginning treat you well and your spirit guide you towards adventure!_" Adventure? What does it mean by adventure? Joshy Boy removes his backpack and takes a look inside of its inventory—only to discover there is nothing inside. Puzzled, he takes a look at the trees of the woods then forms an idea to collect the wooden blocks. But how can he harvest wood without an axe? Only a fool will walk up to a tree and try using only its fists to knock it down. So instead, Joshy Boy walks up to a tree, feels around the trunk for a firm grip, then starts to climb up. When he reaches the leaves, he searches for a few sturdy sticks and breaks them from the tree and into a small pile. Finally he drops from the tree, landing awkwardly, and tends to it.

Among them, he chooses the sturdiest one and carefully splits the top end for a narrow-tight slit then begins breaking off the ends of the other sticks. After wedging the thin ends into the slit, Joshy Boy takes one of his shoelaces and fastens together a forged axe. He takes a few practice swings to ensure the constructed tool is durable enough to take a little bit of punishment. Sure the tool will not last very long, given its craftsmanship is less than ideal, but it will provide a way for Joshy Boy to make a start. So he returns to the same tree, readies his forged axe, and then strikes the trunk as hard as he can until the tree itself collapses into blocks. Perfect! The forged axe is able to carry out its purpose. So he collects the wooden blocks and forges together wooden planks for benchmarking.

The player wastes no time to get started on his adventure. From the crafted workbench, he makes a better wooden axe to clear more trees, breaks stone into cobblestone with a wooden pickaxe, and collects the raw entrails and hides of nearby wildlife with the sharp end of his wooden sword. Around high noon he has everything he needs to set up a small campsite and sits on a wooden block to eat apples which have fallen from cleared trees and listens in on the peaceful sounds of the woods. The winds, however, are restless and rough as they tug at the wild grass along the ground and ruffle the green hair of the varying oak trees. Even the clouds from yonder seem to be swelling up with rage and cast their shadows over the wooded biome. So Joshy Boy hops to his feet to begin the construction of a small tent and the crafting of a sufficient bed.

By late evening, the heavy rainclouds soon conquer the sky and thunder rumbles off above as the shining star slowly hides behind the thickness of the thunderheads. After splitting planks into sticks and crafting together fence posts to support his tent, Joshy Boy takes his wooden axe into his hands and examines it closely. The tool is heavily cracked and dulled but is durable enough to take down at least one of the taller in the wooded biome, so he throws on his backpack and ventures deeper into the woods. The rain begins to pour all at once, drowning out all the natural sounds of the woods and shrouding it in mist and fog. Thunder crashes from left to right and lightening flashes vividly across the skies, which soon grow completely dark as nightfall begins its cycle unnoticed.

"_Be wary of nightfall, player,_" howls the voice of the wind. "_There are dangers of the night which lurk in the shadows..._" Upon a flash of lightening, Joshy Boy suddenly feels an uneasy presence of something (or rather someone) standing behind him. However, nothing appears to be there except the eerie notion. So he quickly clears the tallest the tree he has found before his wooden axe breaks into splinters, gathers the collapsed wooden blocks along the ground, then finally hurries off in a random direction. The heavy rainfall splashes upon Joshy Boy's fedora and flashes of lightening only offer an instant's worth of guidance that taunts him with a wild goose chase. It has become apparent that he has lost his way from the campsite. From time to time he takes underneath a tree to give himself a bit of break from the daunting downpour. His chest aches painfully from the lack of air in his lungs but his body simmers in frustration despite the raging storm.

"Son of a bitch..." he sputters. He hates the fact that he is lost and cannot seem to recognize or identify any type of trail that can lead him back to the campsite. He leans back against the trunk of a tree until something glowing in the distance catches his sight. What on earth is that? Curiously, Joshy Boy peers closer through the wall of the rain to observe the present sight. From what he can make out, it looks to be a pair of eyes locked on him. Can they be the eyes of an enraged enderman? They did not appear to be. The eyes watching him are nearly dead white and behind them stares a figure who looks a lot like a player. But in a moment's notice, the figure vanishes. Fear begins to settle inside of Joshy Boy's heart as he abandons the tree to resume his search. Over time his body is overcome with fatigue and nausea begins to distort his vision. His breathing becomes increasingly difficult as he slowly drowns under the falling ocean of rain.

But finally, he notices something white hiding behind a few trees. The campsite—he has found it! He laughs hysterically at the promising sight and rushes over to his wooden chest to fish out the raw entrails he collected before the storm. He takes refuge underneath his tent and begins nourishing himself into recovery. He crashes upon his soggy bed and soon drifts off to sleep while the downpour of the storm continues to drench the woods.

Upon the next clear morning, Joshy Boy reemerges from under his tent to stretch himself out before digging around in his wooden chest for new materials. It is time to get an upgrade, but performing the task will prove to be a bit more difficult than crafting wooden tools. So after a few attempts and several cobblestone blocks chipped away, Joshy Boy successfully crafts a stone pickaxe and a stone sword. He needs to find a cave. It will be essential for him to begin harvesting basic minerals if he is to continue to survive and progress. So he straps his sword to his backpack, swings his pickaxe over his shoulder, and sets off. Within a quarter of the day, he finds himself staring deep into the mouth of a large cave. It is almost like he will be entering the belly of a beast with a shuddering notion that the earth will swallow him whole.

But for every player there is a natural waiver whenever it comes to mining: a promise of prizes with a twist of death. There would be no benevolence from the sun as time does not exist within a cave system and players could be lost for hours or even days without finding their way out. Starvation might be a temporary companion while insanity could remain as a permanent house guest. However, the worst factor would be the dangers of the night, for it would be difficult to detect or escape from Mobs within a kingdom of moving shadows. However, with all things considered, he ventures inside.

The atmosphere of the cave feels heavy and toxic and the silence it brings is almost deafening unless met by the sound of dripping water or squeaking bats. Within the growing darkness, he discovers pockets of coal ore blocks and breaks them into lumps then rubs sticks left over from planks against them so they can catch fire and provide a little bit of light along his descent. From there on, he locates a small vein of iron ore blocks then proceeds onward along a natural passage half lit by his last constructed torch. As he advances further into the fleeing darkness, Joshy Boy can hear the sound of another pickaxe rising from the depths. Who else can be down here? Another player? Surely he is alone in these woods. He decides to investigate. But then there is a crumble and crash and soon a small cloud of dust mists through the passage. The sound of heavy coughing makes him act with urgency.

"Hey, are you alright?" he calls out once the dust clears. However, a gasp slips through the apparent darkness as if the being has become startled. Joshy Boy digs around in his backpack to fish out another stick and piece of coal then places a torch along the stone wall to catch sight of the figure. What he witnesses is a little...odd. Standing before him is a female figure whose attire carries the resemblance of the Zombie. Her eyes, though innocent and gray, stare lifelessly (and nervously) at him as silence looms over them. Here in the cave with Joshy Boy is a mining Zombie girl.


End file.
